Google’s Tribute to the ‘Father of the Deaf’ Aka the First Sign Language Educator, Charles-Michel De l’Epee by This Animated Doodle

Google doodle to pay tribute to the 'Father of the Deaf.' (Screengrab Google. com)

If today's Google doodle makes you curious, let us tell you that Google today honours a very special person- Charles-Michel de l'Epee, on his 306th birthday today. Charles was an extraordinary human being who founded the first public school for the hearing-impaired in France. He realised that no physical impairment can affect the learning capabilities of anyone. Son of an architect Charles was born in Versailles, France in the year 1712. He believed in the idea that hearing impairment cannot stop anyone from learning. It was one day when he met two young sisters from a slum speaking in sign language to each amazed him. He realised that so many lives could have been improved if they studied sign language, a language that could connect more deaf people to each other. Google Turns 20, Celebrates Birthday With Special Doodle; Watch Video.

Take a look at this video about Charles-Michel de l'Epee-

Deaf people faced a lot of discrimination in that era of time and it is at that time when Charles had this idea.

Also known as the 'Father of the Deaf', he devoted his life to developing the world's first sign alphabet for the deaf people. He also created a systematic method of teaching deaf people. Philanthropic educator, Épée mainly studied to be a Catholic priest but later decided to dedicate his life to the education of the deaf, and it was in the year 1760 that he founded a school. He breathed his last in the year 1789 at the beginning of the French Revolution. His tomb is in the Church of Saint Roch in Paris. Soon after his death, the National Assembly recognized him as a 'Benefactor of Humanity' which led to the declaration that deaf people had rights according to the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. His method of education became very popular all across the world.